[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 218 (Friday, November 9, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56731-56732]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-28160]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration Federal Highway Administration


Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the I-90 Project; Notice 
of Intent

AGENCIES: Federal Transit Administration, DOT and Federal Highway 
Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS).

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the Federal Highway 
Administration (FHWA), the Washington State Department of 
Transportation (WSDOT) and the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit 
Authority (Sound Transit) intend to prepare an EIS in accordance with 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on the I-90 Project. The 
project proposes to design and construct modifications to I-90 between 
Bellevue and Seattle in Order to improve the reliability of connections 
to the region-wide transit network. The modifications could include 
changing the operation number and/or width of existing traffic lanes, 
and adding connections between the new I-90 traffic lanes and existing 
ramps. Traffic congestion eastbound in the morning and westbound in he 
evening has degraded transit reliability in both directions on I-90. 
Scoping will be accomplished through meetings and correspondence with 
interested persons, organizations, the general public, federal, state 
and local agencies and tribes.

DATES: Comment Due Date: Written comments on the scope of the 
alternatives and impacts to be considered should be sent to Sound 
Transit by December 17, 2001. See ADDRESSES below, Scoping meetings: 
Public scoping meetings will be held on Tuesday, December 4, 2001 from 
4 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Bellevue at the Leavitt Building and on Wednesday, 
December 5, 2001 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Mercer Island High School 
Commons and on Thursday, December 6, 2001 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 
Union Station. See ADDRESSES below.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the project scope of alternatives and 
impacts to be considered should be sent to Perry Weinberg, Sound 
Transit, 401 South Jackson St., Seattle, WA 98104-2826 by December 17, 
2001 (30 day comment period). Scoping meetings will be held on the 
following days and locations:

Public Scoping Meetings

Tuesday, December 4, 2001, 4-7 p.m.,
Location: Leavitt Building--Room 1AB, 301 116th Avenue SE (Bellevue 
City Hall Complex), Bellevue, Washington, and

Wednesday, December 5, 2001, 4 p.m.-7 p.m.,
Location: Mercer Island High School Commons, 9100 SE 42nd street, 
Mercer Island, Washington, and

Thursday, December 6, 2001, 4 pm-7p.m.
Location: Union Station--Sound Transit Board Room, 401 S. Jackson 
Street, Seattle, Washington.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Witmer, Federal Transit 
Administration. 915 2nd Avenue Suite 3142, Seattle, WA 98174; 
Telephone: 206.220.7964; Jim Leonard, Federal Highway Administration, 
711 S. Capitol Way, Suite 501, Olympia, Washington, 98501. Telephone: 
360.753.9408; Perry Weinberg, Sound Transit, 401 S. Jackson Street, 
Seattle, WA 98104-2826, Telephone: 206.689.4931 or Ben Brown, WSDOT, 
P.O. Box 330310, Seattle, WA 98133-9710, Telephone: 206.440.4528.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:   

I. Scoping

    The FTA, FHWA, WSDOT and Sound Transit invite comments from 
interested individuals, organizations, and federal, state, regional and 
local agencies for a period of 30 days after publication of this 
notice. Letters describing the proposed action and soliciting comments 
will be sent to appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies, and to 
private organizations and citizens who have previously expressed or are 
known to have interest in this proposal. (See DATES and ADDRESSES 
above). To ensure that the full range of issues related to this 
proposed action are addressed and all significant issues identified, 
comments and suggestions are invited from all interested parties. 
Comments or questions concerning this proposed action and the EIS 
should be directed to FTA or Sound Transit at the addresses provided 
above. Comments are requested by December 17, 2001. A project 
newsletter describing the project, the proposed alternatives, the 
impact areas to be evaluated, the public involvement program and the 
preliminary project schedule has been prepared. You may request a copy 
of the newsletter by contracting Carol Masnik, Sound Transit, 401 South 
Jackson St., Seattle, WA 98104-2826. Telephone: 206.398.5048. All of 
the locations for the scoping meeting are accessible to people with 
disabilities. Non-English translation services and accessible formats 
are available by request at 800.201.4900 (voice)-- or 206.398.5410 
(TTY).

II. Study Area and Alternatives

    FTA, FHWA, WSDOT and the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit 
Authority (Sound Transit) will prepare an EIS for the I-90 project 
which is evaluating alternatives to provide reliable two-way transit 
operations on the I-90 corridor

[[Page 56732]]

between Bellevue and Seattle. Alternatives under preliminary 
consideration include;

No Build--Alternative R-1

    Under the No Build Alternative, the existing I-90 roadway 
facilities would remain in place, however, it is likely that there 
would be operational revisions to the center roadway by 2007. These 
changes could include restricting the use of the center roadway to high 
occupancy vehicles (HOV) traffic, which would displace single occupancy 
vehicles (SOVs) traveling between Seattle and Mercer Island to the 
outer roadways, and/or change the HOV eligibility requirements from 2+ 
or 3+ occupants per vehicle.

Alternative R-2B Modified--Two-Way Center Roadway

    Alternative R-2B would convert the center roadway to two-way 
operation by adding a concrete barrier, providing one travel lane in 
each direction for its full length. Two additional ramps would be 
constructed on Mercer Island at 77th and 80th Avenues to complete the 
downtown interchange with the center roadway. The Bellevue Way ramp 
would be converted to two-way operation. This alternative would address 
concerns about breakdowns by providing additional center roadway width 
across Mercer Island and by removing the barrier between the westbound 
lanes and the center roadway on the Homer M. Hadley floating bridge, 
providing a buffer area for cars or buses to pull over in the event of 
an emergency. The center roadway would be restricted to transit and 
eligible carpools for its entire length. HOV eligibility requirements 
would likely be changed from 2+ to 3+ occupants per vehicle with this 
alternative.

Alternative R-5 Restripe--Transit-Only Shoulders on Outer Roadway

    Alternative R-5 would retain the reversible operations in the 
center roadway, with both lanes operating in the same direction. R-5 
would restripe the outer roadways, narrowing lane and inside shoulder 
widths to create transit-only shoulder lanes operating on the outside 
shoulders. These shoulder lanes would be open to eastbound transit 
buses in the morning peak period and westbound transit buses in the 
afternoon peak period.

Alternative R-5 Modified--Transit-Only Shoulders on Outer Roadway

    Alternative R-5 Modified would operate similarly to Alternative R-5 
Restripe and would retain the reversible operations in the center 
roadway. In addition, it would reconfigure portions of the outer 
roadway to allow for a wider inside shoulder for westbound buses, 
providing continuity with the existing HOV lane and transit connections 
to downtown Seattle. Ramps at Bellevue Way and on Mercer Island would 
be modified to provide connections to the westbound transit shoulder. 
The eastbound outer roadway would be widened to allow for standard 
inside shoulder and traffic lane widths on Mercer Island while 
providing a wider outside shoulder for use by transit.

Alternative R-8A--Add HOV Lanes on Outer Roadway

    Alternative R-8A would retain the current reversible operations in 
the center roadway, with both lanes operating in the same direction. 
Single-occupant vehicles would only be allowed to use the center 
roadway between Seattle and Mercer Island, per the existing 
restrictions on center roadway use. The outer roadways would be 
modified to provide one additional travel lane in both the eastbound 
and westbound direction for use by HOV traffic. This would be 
accomplished by restriping, reducing the width of existing shoulders 
and travel lanes, and where feasible, widening the outer roadways 
within the existing right-of-way. Ramps at Bellevue Way and on Mercer 
Island would be modified to provide connections to the HOV lanes. The 
center and outer roadway HOV lanes would likely operate with a 2+ 
occupants per vehicle posting. A number of operational strategies to 
address safety concerns associated with reduced-width travel lanes and 
shoulders would be evaluated.

Transportation Demand Management (TDM)/Transportation System Management 
(TSM) Alternative

    The TDM/TSM Alternative would incorporate measures to reduce 
demands on the transportation system. Examples of TDM/TSM may include 
ridesharing, parking management, telecommuting, congestion pricing, 
non-motorized travel, site design standards, public information, joint 
use of parking facilities, and other measures.
    The list of alternatives to be included in the EIS will be 
finalized after scoping, based on the comments received.

III. Probable Effects

    The lead agencies have identified the following key areas for 
discussion in the EIS:
     Impacts to the visual quality of the I-90 corridor.
     Impacts to vehicular traffic including issues of safety.
     Impacts to the existing bike/pedestrian path along I-90.
     Impacts on water quality in Mercer Slough and Lake 
Washington.
    Other key area of probable effects may be identified and discussed 
in the EIS process.

Linda Gehrke,
Deputy Regional Administrator, Region X, Federal Transit 
Administration.
Jim Leonard,
Urban Transportation and Environmental Engineer, Federal Highway 
Administration, Washington, Division Office.
[FR Doc. 01-28160 Filed 11-8-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P (FHA); 4910-57-P (FTA)